[edit]Famous Dave's second location was in the Linden Hills neighborhood of Minneapolis and was built in 1995 to look like a classic BBQ shack; it was demolished in 2016.Exterior of a Famous Dave's in Frederick, Maryland (now closed)
The first restaurant of the chain was Famous Dave's Bar-B-QueinHayward, Wisconsin. On the morning of November 3, 2014, it was destroyed by fire.[6] The second location opened in the Linden Hills neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1995 and was designed to be an old-fashioned "roadside BBQ Shack".[7] It closed in 2014.[8] The third location opened in 1996 in the Calhoun Square development in Uptown Minneapolis and was designed as a Blues club, Famous Dave's BBQ & Blues. It closed in 2019.[9] A "Lodge" format opened in Minnetonka, Minnesota and the first franchise-operated restaurant opened in Burnsville, Minnesota.[7]
Jeff Crivello became CEO at Famous Dave's in 2017. The company rebranded as BBQ Holdings and, in 2020, began buying up other brands. The company sold to MTY Food Group in 2022.[10] Crivello left BBQ Holdings in May 2023.[11]
In 1986, Anderson earned a master's degree in Public Administration from Harvard University, without earning an undergraduate degree.[12]
In 1994, he was one of the first investors in Rainforest Café, a theme restaurant chain, and in October 1994, Dave Anderson opened the first Famous Dave's in Hayward, Wisconsin.[13] Two years after opening in Hayward, the company went public in 1996. Anderson stated on Facebook that the IPO was "the worst decision of his life". Anderson was Famous Dave's CEO until 1997, and remained chairman of the company's board until 2003. Anderson ended his relationship with Famous Dave's in March 2014, signing a one-year non-compete agreement, after which he opened Jimmie's Old Southern Smokehouse BBQ.[14]
^"The Legend of Famous Dave's". Famous Dave's of America. Archived from the original on 16 May 2012. Retrieved 21 December 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
